Phyllis Melbo Mitchell

WWII Army Nurse San Antonio resident, Phyllis Melbo Mitchell, who served in the 110th Medical Evacuation Hospital in WWII, died of complications of Alzheimer's disease on June 3, 2008. Born in Crookston, MN, in 1921, she was the daughter of Hans and Hilda Melbo. Her father, Hans, had immigrated to northern Minnesota from his home in Norway above the Arctic Circle. Upon earning her RN degree from the Swedish Hospital School of Nursing at the outbreak of WWII, Phyllis joined the Army Nurse Corps and was sent to Camp Swift, TX, for training prior to embarking for Europe as part of Patton's Third Army. It was there that she met her future husband, Dr. Russell A. Mitchell, who was stationed there as a dental officer. The 110th landed on Utah Beach shortly after D-Day and served the 3rd Army as it moved across France and into Luxembourg where they engaged in the Battle of the Bulge. As an Operating Room RN, she often assisted in the surgery of more than 100 patients a day during that conflict. At the end of the war Phyllis returned to San Antonio where she married Russell, embarking on a happy union that would last 58 years until his death at age 97. She was a prolific gardener, master cook, and avid traveler, visiting Europe many times over the span of 5 decades. In the 1950s, she served a term as President of the Women of Alamo Heights Presbyterian Church. She is survived by her daughter, Dr. Mary Grizzard of St. Johnsbury, VT; her stepdaughter, Nancy Scott of Ingram, TX, and her stepson, Dr. Russell A. Mitchell, Jr., of Dallas, TX; four grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.